Students of first-person shooter history will likely recognize that the technology underpinning Half-Life—known as GoldSrc—is a heavily modified version of the Quake engine. This connection is just one of many branches stemming from id-tech’s venerable technological lineage. Even today, remnants of Quake code can be found in Valve’s modern successor to GoldSrc, Source 2.
Reviving the Classics
Fast forward nearly three decades since Half-Life made its debut, and a modder has embarked on an ambitious project to intertwine Quake with Half-Life, or perhaps the other way around. The project, titled Libre-life, is a total conversion mod that seeks to port essential elements from Half-Life, including entities, weapons, monsters, and mechanics, into Quake source ports derived from DarkPlaces and FTEQW, with a primary focus on the Zircon Engine. This endeavor is spearheaded by modder KleskBY, who aims to “combine support for Half-Life, Quake 1, and Quake 3 brush entities standard,” as detailed on Libre-life’s ModDB page.
But what motivates Klesk in this endeavor? Contrary to what one might assume, the project is more about looking forward than reminiscing about the past. Older game engines like GoldSrc come with inherent limitations, such as restrictions on the maximum size of a map, which can hinder creative expression.
To navigate these constraints, modders often turn to source ports, akin to GZDoom for Doom 2 or QuakeSpasm for Quake. These adaptations enable the creation of mods like Brutal Doom and Arcane Dimensions. However, Klesk has opted against using Xash3D, citing several reasons for this choice. He emphasizes that Libre-life is designed to be more than a simple engine port. “It can run on multiple Quake engines and could even run on Xash with enough adaptation work,” Klesk explains. “There is no need for the project to be locked to a single Half-Life based engine.” Furthermore, he argues that Xash’s reimplementation of Half-Life is “not technically superior,” and that the Quake source ports he is focusing on offer “many capabilities that Xash does not.”
Currently, Libre-life is in its nascent stages, yet significant progress has already been made, including the reimplementation of all weapons from Half-Life 1. The results of Klesk’s efforts can be observed in a demo video, where the project retains much of the essence of Half-Life, albeit with some noticeable differences, such as higher-contrast shadows and softer blood decals.
Upon exploring the demo, I found Klesk’s approach to AI particularly intriguing. In the FAQ section regarding the demo, Klesk candidly states that he utilizes AI “a lot” and advises those who are “anti-AI” to redirect their attention to XashXT/FreeHL. As someone who harbors skepticism toward generative AI, this prompted me to reconsider my engagement with the project. Yet, it was Klesk’s subsequent remarks that truly caught my attention. He expressed strong opinions about AI, labeling it as built upon plagiarized work, detrimental to the environment, harmful to the PC hardware market, and a source of mental distress for many.
Given these assertions, it appears unlikely that Klesk will waver in his commitment to using AI for Libre-life. However, the landscape of modding is ever-evolving. A recent total conversion of Half-Life called Diffusion, which was constructed in Xash3D, incorporated generative AI for its voice work. When faced with criticism, its creator, Aynekko, opted to replace the AI-generated voices with a cast of human actors, much to the delight of fans.
